Digital Signage for

Healthcare More than just a screen. It’s a sign

that you care about your staff and

patients.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Chapter Page number

The case for digital

communications

…………………………….……..3

Digital Signage Content ……………………………………5

The ROI of using digital

signage

………………………..………….8

Your solution- what you

need to purchase

…………………………….........9

The software ……………………….……......11

Conclusions ……………………………..…..14

Examples of digital signage

applications

………………………………….15

CHAPTER 1:

The case for

digital

communications Data from a recent research

conducted in the UK shows that

patients’ experience of using a GP’s

services affects the quality of their

care. The more experienced they are,

the better the final result, the more

satisfied they are with the service, the

higher the outcome score (QOF) and

the greater the financial reward

received by the GP.

But in order for patients to

develop a record of experiences with

the GP[1], those must be positive. As

expected, negative experiences lead to

fewer interactions and Mr. Hunt seems

to imply that effective communications

hold a key role in reaching this triple

goal (better usage of services, patients

satisfaction and more funding).

Page 3

Quick facts:

• UK’s health secretary puts

‘’technology revolution’’ at the top of

NHS’s priority list (Source:

HealthBusinessuk.net);

• NHS acute trusts set to spend £800m/

year on health IT by 2015 (Source:

HealthBusinessuk.net). The total IT

spend will grow by 4.2% between

2012- 2013.

• NHS might become paperless by as

soon as 2015 (ehealth INSIDER);

• Fewer doctors to be trained in the

future. The number of medical

students will be reduced by 2% (The

Telegraph);

British health think tank, the King’s Fund

notes that in the past decade the National

Heath Service has registered a progress

but ‘’treacherous waters’’ might lie ahead

because of the last years’ cuts in budget.

Jeremy Hunt, UK health secretary says:

Patients, especially those with

long term conditions… want

more joined-up care and much of

the solution is in better use and

sharing of information.

“ ”

[1] GP (general practitioner)- a medical practitioner who

treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventive

care and health education. The British equivalent of a family

physician.

Why digital

signage?

Digital signs (or digital signage) allow

you to send targeted messages to one

or several locations from a central point

be it the Communication or Estates

department or simply from your

reception desk.

Here are the advantages of digital signs

over static posters:

- Information can be streamed in real

time from online sources (websites,

social media) to display the latest

news automatically;

- They can support videos;

- They can be updated almost

instantaneously at no additional cost;

- Digital signs can be centrally

managed but one can give a certain

degree of control to staff members

from remote locations;

- Messages can be posted

automatically on certain dates and at

certain times with no human

intervention;

- Messages can be automatically

deleted from your playlist so no

outdated ones are posted on the

screens.

Digital signage can be used to:

Display time-critical and instant

announcements

Inform about news and events to

create a sense of community

Educate and reassure patients and

visitors.

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Page 4

DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS

Screen run by our software,

digitalsignage.NET

CHAPTER 2

Digital signage

content

Example of digital signage messages

A screen can support a multitude of

messages in a variety of formats. Here

are just a few examples that our friends

at Digital Signage Connection are

suggesting:

• Reminders- remind patients to take

their medication as prescribed,

register or show up for their flu jabs.

These messages are appropriate for

screens in waiting rooms and

reception areas.

• Staff messages- keep your staff

informed about key matters so

patients are offered a high- quality

service. These type of messages can

be displayed in employees break

rooms along with other

communications deemed important;

• Key healthcare matters (hand hygiene

procedures, the effects of certain

medication etc.) and terminology (what

is the norovirus, etc.);

• Way- finding information- present how

and where key locations of your

establishment are to be found;

• General information about opening

times, home visits, appointments

procedures etc.

• Adverts of pharmaceutical products.

According to Screenmediamag, digital

displays are twice as effective than

printed communications and they

enable institutions to generate revenue.

• Reassure patients. Some people might

feel uneasy about a consultation or

nervous about their blood test results.

Display messages that would have a

calming effect.

Page 5

DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS

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With digital information

displays you are offered a great deal

of freedom as to what content formats

you want to display. Use the ones you

feel comfortable with and repurpose

existing content (archived videos and

photos).

These are a few content types

that digitalsignage.NET, our digital

signage software allows you to

display:

• Video (AVI, MPEG1/2, MPG, MOV

(H264), MOV, WMV);

• Live video: Composite video, S-

video, Exterity via player plugin.

Share live footage from important

events with those in your locations.

• Images: JPG’s. You can also use

PowerPoint presentations but you

must convert those into JPG’s to

be able to display them.

• HTML5 widgets- news, weather,

calendar, Twitter. These allow you

to display real- time information

from a variety of sources and

complement your communications.

Digital

signage

content types

Page 6

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The ‘content is king’ idea is only half of

the story. Relevant, fresh and timely

content is what triggers responses and

generates ROI.

digitalsignage.NET allows you to send

the right information to the right location,

at the right time, to the right people with

just a few mouse- clicks, thanks to its

scheduling feature.

Page 7

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Sending the right type of

information

Besides the difference in content

between your message in the lunch

area and the ones in the waiting room

or the reception, your communications

must differ in terms of length as well.

Your staff and patients will never

watch long videos shown on screens in

corridors, so it’s never a good idea to

use this type of media in locations with

low dwell- times. Short, snappy

messages are best to show in areas

people where people don’t spend much

time in.

However, waiting rooms are

suitable for longer communications, so

videos are a good choice for this

environment. Don’t miss the chance to

present your services, news and other

general information while patients have

quite a bit of time available.

If you respect the rule above, you

should be on the safe side in terms of

files formats and length.

DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS

Moving people

read static

messages and

static people

read moving

messages

“

” Stephen Beasley, Fitch

Tip

Your entire project should be built

around your message.

Begin by asking yourself these two

questions:

1) What are my goals? What do I

want to achieve by using digital

signage?

2) What do I want to communicate

in order to achieve my goals?

Answering them will make it easier for

you to measure your digital signage

system’s ROI.

CHAPTER 3

The ROI of

using digital

signage

After deciding what you want to achieve by

using digital signage, the next thing to do is put

a system in place to check if your goals are

being achieved or not.

Your goals can include but are not limited to|:

- More informed patients

- Reduced workload for staff as the screens

can take on the role of receptionists

- Increased sign- up for the services provided

(flu jab registrations);

- Lower appointments cancellations;

- Fewer complaints;

- Lower print and other communication-

related costs

- A more efficient communications system.

Now that your goals are established, decide

what measurement methods you’re going to

use.

Give the system a couple of months to prove

its worth and then assess the results. You can:

- Conduct surveys and compare results before

and after a digital signage system was

installed;

- Check and compare records (of

appointments cancellations, complaints, sign

up rates etc.- before and after digital

signage);

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DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS

- Ask staff for their opinion about the

digital signs and their effects. Have

they helped them in any way?

- Monitor the patients’ awareness of

the screens and the time they

spend watching them;

- Compare print costs- before and

after;

The next step after collecting the

results is adjusting your tactics

accordingly.

Your digital signage software should

give you the freedom to experiment

with different content types and days/

hours combinations.

CHAPTER 4 In its simplest version, a digital

signage system has three main elements:

• The content- the message you will

display on your screen. Your content files

can be anything from videos, images,

RSS feeds, widgets etc.).

• The software- that delivers your

content to the media player(s) that powers

your screen(s). It also allows you to

schedule your content to play at certain

times of the day and days of the week and

check if the system is working properly. It

can be hosted in the cloud or on your own

premises (see next section).

Page 9

Your solution-

what you need

to purchase

DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS

The hardware: the screen itself

(LCD’s, 10’’ digital photo frames etc.)

and the computer or media player that

stores your content and sends it to the

screen(s). You need one media player

only if you’ll show the same content on

all your screens and several for

different content on different screens.

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CHAPTER 4

Page 10

Your solution-

what you need

to purchase

DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS

• The installation. Your screen needs to be

wall mounted and media players need to

be configured. This is usually the job of

audio- visual integrators, specialist

companies that assemble all the pieces

of the puzzle together.

• The support. Make sure help is available

when you need it- whether software or

hardware- related. This can be provided

by the AV integrator, the software vendor

or both. Sometimes, the support can be

free. For example, we offer free email

support for our software,

digitalsignage.NET.

Clarify these aspects before the actual start

of your project. Decide about your goals, the

messages you are going to show and

whether you are going to personalise them

based on the screens’ location. Choose the

screens’ emplacement, the type of screens

and media players you will be using and the

software that will run the entire network.

Many of these decisions are simplified by

the collaboration with an integrator

(especially the choice of hardware and

software).

We have partnered with a number of

such companies that can assist you with

your project and that are located

throughout the UK and some in South

America.

A selection of them are listed here.

Tip

Place your screens where the

audience you want to target

(patients, staff, visitors) is most

likely to be found.

Ensure that mains outputs are

available in the near by area.

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The software

Page 11

The digital signage software is that

critical piece of the puzzle that allows you

to upload, schedule and display your

messages on your screens, with the help

of media players.

The rise of cloud- computing has made

digital signage available to organisations

of all sizes, as it drove its costs down.

Here’s how the system delivers your

message to your screens, via the cloud.

After you upload, scheduling and publish

your media files, these will be loaded

onto the cloud (i.e. Internet) then

redirected to the media players you’ve

selected, that will store your files and

send them to their associated screens.

The entire operation takes virtually

seconds allowing your message to

appear on your screens in almost real-

time.

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for free!

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DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS

Should you

host it or

should it be in

the cloud?

A hosted digital signage system implies that

you will have to buy the server software

(thus owning it), build your servers and

maintain them. The advantage is that the

system is highly secure, as nobody outside

your organization has access to your

servers.

The downside is that you have to become a

specialist in the chosen digital signage

software; you are the one maintaining it as

you will be maintaining the servers too, an

operation that takes time, effort and money.

Cloud- computing on the other side, reliefs

you from the task of maintaining servers,

backing up data, worrying about band width

or data storage. The vendor will be

responsible for these.

Thus the technical knowledge and effort

required of you will be minimal. Most

vendors offer free, automatic updates of the

software which is rarely (or never) the case

for an on-premise one.

The advantage of premise- based digital

signage software is that it is usually more

sophisticated than its cloud- based

counterparty.

Page 12

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The advantage of cloud- based

systems is their quick and cost-

effective set up (as there are no

licenses or servers to buy and

install). All you have to do is create

your digital signage software

account, buy your hardware and

then install it, besides creating your

content.

Whatever your choice make sure it

suits your establishment’s needs.

DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS

Page 13

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As you probably know by now,

impactful communications don’t rely on

visually appealing content or the latest

technology only.

Ensuring that this is delivered

when, where and to whom it matters is

critical. Patients aren’t interested in staff

messages and announcements about

outdated events are useless at best.

Putting your message in context

means making it meaningful to a

particular target audience. That is why we

recommend that you don’t display the

same message on all your screens, but

you personalise it based on:

- The screen’s location;

- Your interests of your audience;

- The time of the day;

- The day of the week;

- Seasons, special events or

celebrations.

The worst thing you could do with your

digital signs system is showing the same

information day-in and day-out,

irrespectively of who is seeing it.

DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS

Going beyond

technology

and content.

Considering

the context

The best thing you can do is ensuring

that your communications are relevant

to those watching your screens and that

the way you are using the system

enables you to meet their goals.

Leverage the flexibility that digital

signage offers you and don’t use the

signs as you would use printed posters.

Tip

As yourself the question:

‘’What messages would the

different target groups be most

receptive to in different contexts

(when waiting to see their doctor,

visiting/ treating a patient)?’’

Conclusions

‘’The way we use technology has profoundly

changed society. But the NHS has not kept

pace.’’ Jeremy Hunt, UK health secretary.

Whether you agree with this statement or

not and whether this holds true where you

are or it doesn’t, it is certain that technology

plays a major role in enabling medical staff

to deliver a better patient experience.

Communication is key to a smooth running

of day- to- day activities and routine

procedures. Digital signs allow you to

answer your patient’s FAQ’s, clarify staff

procedures, deliver general healthcare

information to visitors when they’re most

receptive to these type of messages.

Reducing costs

Your digital signage system is a more cost-

effective alternative to printed signs too.

They don’t deteriorate as quickly, can

support incomparably more messages and

can be refreshed with new information at 0

costs. If you have the possibility to display

advertising, then they can also become a

revenue- generating tool.

Their ROI is more measurable than that of

static signs allowing you to test, measure

and adapt your communications quicker.

Page 14

All elements are important

The software’s ‘magical’ element is the

fact that it allows you to manage your

screens and content from any place in

the world, provided that there is an

Internet connection available.

But the quality and style of the screens

and the visual appeal and relevance of

the content are equally important.

One element is useless without the

others. The software without the content

or the screens without the software are

not going to help you much. So you

need to choose and plan all these

aspects carefully and well- in advance to

be able to set up a successful, scalable

and lucrative digital signage solution.

Prepare yourself for the future by

experimenting with the technology at

zero costs for you. Call us today for a

free consultation!

Or get a digitalsignage.NET account.

Examples of

digital signage

applications

digitalsignage.NET allow s you to schedule and

display the content

on your photo frames

remotely relieving you from the task of updating

images via USB drives.

Use an original Time Capsule to

present your institution’s history by

displaying images from the past

and present.

Page 15

Candy for the eye. Video walls are eye- catching

and suitable for large areas.

Share this ebook! One single screen can support a multitude of messages

during its lifetime.

Image credit: Fotos Gov/Ba

Page 16

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Put your knowledge to work and

take a tour of our digital signage

application.

All you need is a standard PC or

Mac, an Internet connection and a

few photos, videos and RSS feeds

to upload and schedule and you’re

all set.

Create your digitalsignage.NET

account now.

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